Bigamist Susan Wong got married to her rich Saudi Arabian lover while still hitched to her previous husband.

Wong had split from her husband and fell for wealthy Habeebbuddin Mohammed.

She was just weeks away from receiving her decree absolute, which would have meant she was free to walk down the aisle again.

But with Mr Mohammed’s student visa running out, the couple decided to get married on New Years Eve, before Wong’s divorce was confirmed.

Police initially believed it was a sham marriage but soon found they were a genuine couple.

However, their marriage is not legitimate, as Wong was already married.

Newcastle Crown Court heard the 35-year-old had married her first husband in Pakistan in 2006 and they moved to England.

Their marriage failed and he was removed from the UK in January 2011.

Mr Mohammed arrived in the country on a student visa in 2009, moving to Newcastle in 2010.

Wong and Mr Mohammed embarked on a relationship and in November 2011 they gave notice of their intention to marry.

Prosecutor Stephen Duffield said: “As a consequence there was an application for a decree nisi made in November. However, after that and before the decree absolute was issued, they went through with the marriage ceremony on December 31, 2011.”

The court heard Mr Mohammed’s student visa was due to expire weeks later.

But if they had waited until Valentine’s Day, when the decree absolute came through, they could have got married legitimately.

They were arrested on suspicion of being involved in a sham marriage, but it became apparent it was a real romance.

The court heard Wong pretended never to have been married in case Mr Mohammed’s family disapproved.

Wong, of Fenham Road, Fenham, Newcastle, pleaded guilty to bigamy and was given four months’ prison, suspended for 12 months, with 40 hours of unpaid work.

Judge Simon Hickey said: “Bigamy is unusual and rare for a court to deal with.”